I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day
by Ultimate Hybrid
Summary: The doctors said it would help, but apparently when you share your biggest secret with a group of psychos, everyone questions your sanity. One-Shot. R&R, as always.


**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this one-shot.**

**A/N: Written as a Christmas 'present' to Metropolis Kid for a wonderful Christmas One-Shot with Deadpool. Enjoy!**

'**I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day'**

Christmas Day. A sad day indeed for Eddie Brock, for he was locked up in prison, and away from his loved ones. No, scratch that, Eddie only has one loved one; his symbiote. Together they were Venom, the bane of Spider-Man, the scourge of New York, the envy of Scorpion. Apart, he was nothing…just another man stuck in prison… Who knew where the symbiote had gone without him? Was it missing him like he missed it? He sighed for the millionth time that day and sat with his head on his knees, fingering the chain on his ankle. His cellmate was sitting in the corner, carving something into the cement.

A guard tapped on the bars to the cell with his fists. Eddie got up slowly from his position on the lonely bench and moved just as slowly to the cell door. His cellmate glanced at him quickly then looked back to his drawing. It was of a Christmas tree surrounded by presents.

"Time for your session, Brock," the guard said stiffly. He didn't like working on Christmas Day, but somebody had to. Eddie sighed again. For some reason, his doctors (the same ones who had diagnosed him with some mental illness he could not pronounce) had decided that it would 'be good for him' to get around some other human beings. He stepped out into the corridor and waited while the guard put him in handcuffs.

The guard led him through a maze of hallways with cells on both sides. Some of the inmates yelled "Lucky dog!" or some dirty words, or both. After a few minutes of traveling, the pair finally arrived at a pair of double doors, behind which were several doctors and a few other 'crazy people' strapped to boards, who were diagnosed as such, but probably weren't. Just like him. He sighed again. Time for another 'Therapy session' with the guys.

"Ah, Eddie. So nice of you to join us. Please, have a seat," one of the doctors motioned to an empty board. Eddie walked over and leaned casually against the board while the guard strapped him in. Just another day in prison. He looked around himself at all the faces he had come to know so well: a few bank robbers were strapped in across from him that continued to babble nonsense throughout any and all 'therapy' sessions; a gang leader who had given himself up to the police in order to save his family; a man with wild red hair who might actually be 'certifiably' crazy; and a few scientists that had gone too far with genetic experiments. Perfectly sane people, in his opinion.

Off in the distance, bells rang at the church.

_Church_, Eddie thought, _that's where we became Venom._

A tear burned in Eddie's eye, and he blinked it away before anyone noticed. He wasn't fast enough though, because one of the doctors noticed and asked him, "Do you have anything you want to say today, Mr. Brock? It would greatly help your current mental state."

The group stared at him as he cleared his throat, "Well, doctor, I don't really feel-"

"But Eddie, it isn't good for you to keep your emotions all bottled up inside. You need to let them out. Why don't you tell us about what you're thinking right now?" one of the female doctors asked him.

"Do you really want to know what's on my mind right now? I don't think you would like it," Eddie asked the doctors with his eyes narrowed. Several of the 'crazy people' giggled.

"Yes, I thin-" the female doctor started to say, but was interrupted by another doctor.

"Actually, I don't think that's necessary, Mr. Brock. Why don't you tell us about your friend you talk so much about?" a tall doctor asked him.

Eddie smirked. "If you think it'll help doctor," he said sarcastically.

"I heard the bells on Christmas Day…" Eddie began, "when…Spider-Man was up in the church tower… trying to get rid of the…black suit…"

* * *

FLASHBACK!!!

Eddie Brock looked up at the figure in black, standing at the top of the tower, seemingly fighting himself. The figure looked extremely familiar to Eddie; the posture, the figure, even the voice all reminded him of…

"Parker?! Is that you?" he called up to the black suited figure. The figure screamed in anguish in response. "Parker?!"

"AGGGHHHH!!!" came the reply from the top of the tower. "GET OFF ME!!" The black suited figure hit the bell resounding in a loud 'DOOONNNGG' and some type of…black goo started screaming in response to the noise. It pulled away from the figure, but came back again after the noise died down.

"Don't like noise, huh?" the figure said to himself. He then began punching the bell repeatedly. The goo screamed again and pulled away. The figure continued to hit the bell followed by the goo pulling away. Eddie looked up in awe as the goo pulled away a final time and slithered down towards him. It was almost like the goo was made of iron, and Eddie was the magnet.

Eddie stood still, with his head tilted back and his mouth wide open, as the goo enfolded him in its cold embrace. Suddenly, he felt complete for the first time in his life as another voice, that was not his own, started to talk to him.

_Eddie…_

"Who's there?" he said aloud.

_We are, Eddie. We know what you want._

"And what might that be?" he whispered.

_Revenge. And we know just who to get it on._

"Who?" he asked, holding in his breath.

_Peter Parker._

Eddie grinned devilishly as the goo transformed him, coating him in impulses that were not his own.

"I'm in," he said quietly.

_Good._

* * *

THE PRESENT-

"And that's how I ended up in here," Eddie finished. The group around him stared at him like he was crazy.

"Um, Mr. Brock? Have you been taking your medicine lately?" asked one of the doctors nervously.

"Boy and I thought _I _was crazy! But you're just nuts! Hahahahahaha!" the redhead threw his head back and laughed crazily.

Eddie sighed again. Nobody ever took him seriously.


End file.
